Photocatalytic properties of titanium dioxide sputtered on a nanostructured substrate

The effective one-step physical approach is demonstrated for the fabrication of anatase titanium dioxide nanotubes through r.f. magnetron sputtering of TiO₂ on a highly ordered nanoporous anodic alumina template. The nanostructured TiO₂ benefited from the combination of unique properties of both the sputtering technique that provided well-controlled environment for the fabrication of anatase phase TiO₂ and the porous anodic alumina (PAA) that provided uniform and ordered nanopores. The photocatalytic properties of TiO₂ films were characterized following the degradation of methylene blue molecules under UV light irradiation. The photocatalytic activity of the nanostructured TiO₂ films has been found to be approximately twice higher in comparison with the flat TiO₂ films fabricated at the same conditions.